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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23398687">Introduction to the West Branch</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/SereneSorrow/pseuds/SereneSorrow'>SereneSorrow</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>BURN THE WITCH (Manga), Bleach</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Shinichi weekend 2020, Smut</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 05:42:44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>13,056</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23398687</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/SereneSorrow/pseuds/SereneSorrow</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Ichigo has a lot of problems to work though, which is more difficult when he's all alone. Old friends and new adventures might help him with that.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hirako Shinji/Kurosaki Ichigo</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>38</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>111</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So, this story was meant for the ShinIchi Weekend 2020 event, but the chapter count got longer than expected and I decided that even if I finished all 11 chapters (I'm up to 1-7 and 9 :D ) I didn't want to post them all in one week with everything else I also had to post.</p><p>Anyway, the prompts that are included in this story are:</p><p>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 1: Bed/clothes sharing (ch. 1)<br/>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 2: Scent-obsession (ch. 2 &amp; 4 &amp; 10)<br/>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 3: Reverse (ch. 5)<br/>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 4: Unexpected skill (ch. 6 &amp; 11)<br/>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 3: “You don't get to decide what is best for me.” (ch. 7)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     He was always exhausted it seemed, every time he came home it hit him all at once and he realized that everything that had become a part of his life so suddenly and completely was just gone. Surgically excised from his life, the friends that he'd made, the things that he had seen and learned and the adventures that he'd been on were completely gone as though it had all just never happened. No one wanted to talk about it, as though he was supposed to go on and just pretend that it had never existed, as though he didn't know that soul reapers and hollows existed or that a war had taken place right here in his hometown.</p><p>     There were still cracks in the street, the alley Mizuiro had blown up was still scorched and dozens of buildings had been demolished due to severe structural damage. Not all of them had been replaced and if he traveled out past the edge of town there were still craters from his battle with Aizen, the entire landscape changed and new plants still just beginning to grow over the freshly revealed ground. The evidence was everywhere, it wasn't just some fevered dream that he could wave away and move on from, but everyone seemed to expect him to.</p><p>     That or they had just up and disappeared, there one day running a candy shop or relaxing in the warehouse district and the next it was all empty lots. Ichigo had a feeling that they <em>weren't</em> empty, that he just couldn't see them behind some fancy kidō barriers or something, but that didn't mean that the people he knew and expected to see there were <em>in</em> the buildings they had hidden from his sight.</p><p>     Ichigo dropped his schoolbag on the floor by his desk, realizing (unsurprisingly) that he was too tired to do homework, study or read ahead in his textbooks. Instead all he could think of was crawling into bed for a few hours while Isshin was still working, Karin was at soccer practice and Yuzu was staying after school now for her cooking club. The house would be empty and there wouldn't be anyone around to poke in and look concerned yet refuse to address the elephant in the room. He didn't like worrying his sisters, if they'd been home he would have forced himself to sit there and get his work done, kept himself looking busy so that they wouldn't worry. They weren't here though, he had a few hours before anyone would come home and even then it would be some time longer before they might bother to look in on him, so he could do whatever he wanted and he just wanted to rest.</p><p>     Energy was hard to find but Ichigo knew he would be more comfortable out of the school uniform so he dragged his closet open to grab his pajamas, only to remember that he'd given them to Yuzu to wash that morning. With a sigh he stared at the shirts hanging in front of him, letting the sight dim as his eyelids drooped, until a shirt on the far left caught his eye. His breath hitched for a moment as a memory surfaced.</p><p>
  <em>     “Ya' can't walk around town in those rags, I'll lend ya' somethin'.” Hirako said from the other side of the common area.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>     Ichigo looked from the man offering and then down at himself. His clothes were shredded from being attacked by Hiyori and her sandal and then Kensei and his knife, for whatever reason wanting to know if he could fight as well when he was 'burdened' by his living body. The shirt was barely clinging to his shoulders and his belt was split so that his pants would slowly slip down as he walked.</em>
</p><p><em>     Hirako was right, there was no way he could walk across town looking like this, everyone who caught sight of him would be staring and whispering. Sure he didn't care about </em>gossip <em>but this was a bit more than just a crowd of uninformed nosy people making up stories. With a reluctant nod he followed the blonde back to his own bedroom and tried not to stare too intently around at the man's belongings as he dug through his closet and tossed one article after another back over his shoulder to land on the bed.</em></p><p><em>     It was a challenge not to snoop around, but he knew that he wasn't very subtle and Hirako would definitely catch him at it. He was curious about Hirako's personal space because of all the Vizards their leader was the one he knew the least about. He'd gotten to know everyone and been given permission to use everyone's names more informally, but it was easy to shout at Hiyori who was always disrespectful anyway and after Kensei had come at him with that knife a few times well, if that hadn't brought them closer then probably nothing would. Hirako was different though, because Ichigo still kind of smarted over the whole fake student thing, he didn't like being tricked into things and Hirako just thought the whole thing was funny. Ichigo was starting to feel a bit weird though, hanging onto his certainty that he was owed an apology, but he just kept comparing the trick to the way Urahara had manipulated him and </em>he <em>had apologized so it seemed like a logical conclusion to Ichigo that Hirako should too.</em></p><p>
  <em>     In any case, Ichigo had to consciously stop himself from moving over to the bedside table or the dresser and picking through whatever he could find on their surfaces. There weren't any pictures on the wall to draw his attention, so he wound up staring at his shoes until Hirako spun around and started digging though the mess he'd tossed onto the bed again.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>     By the time they'd picked out things that fit and weren't so gaudy that Ichigo would never be caught dead in them it had been most of an hour and gotten chilled outside, so Hirako had lent him a sweatshirt too. At least it covered up the bright yellow pinstripe pattern on the blue shirt he was wearing, under protest but as the least terrible option, beneath the soft purple sweatshirt.</em>
</p><p>     The clothes were still hanging in his closet, he hadn't found a good opportunity to return them and now they were the only physical proof that he'd ever met Hirako and the Vizards. 'One of us' Hirako had said to him at one point, 'join us'. It had sounded final at the time, a 'once you're in, you're in' speech. Ichigo hadn't thought that the Vizards were the sort to let things go so easily, but they'd certainly dropped him quick.</p><p>     Thinking about it now, it all seemed so hasty from start to finish. He'd rushed headlong into every battle, barely even stopping to think because the people that he'd met were in danger. Looking back, it was hard to remember how many of them had even been his friends. Inoue was the prime example of that, she'd been a classmate, but she was Tatsuki's friend and Ichigo hadn't even been close to Tatsuki for a few years at that point. It was like some kind of bond had formed though, she had strange powers and wanted to fight beside him, and then in soul society he had fought against and beside people that had seemed like good people in a bad situation. Somehow he hadn't separated their interest in his strange and sudden appearance and power from friendship, but he'd heard about how people bonded when they went through danger together, even if they had nothing in common besides their situation. It didn't mean that they were really friends.</p><p>     Those clothes in his close really were the only tangible link he had to anyone he'd met since Rukia had stepped into his bedroom so long and yet not so long ago. In an unintentional way, Hirako was the only one who had given Ichigo anything to remember him by. Ichigo found his hands reaching for the shirts, pulling the long-sleeved t-shirt on in place of his uniform shirt. He slipped on an older pair of pajama pants and then approached his bed, feeling almost dazed with exhaustion. He wasn't sure why he wanted to wear Hirako's clothes, other than to keep the memory close, of a time that someone had included him in their little family and had literally clothed him when he'd needed the favor. Even if he wasn't welcome with them anymore it was still a nice thought, better to dwell on than swords and claws stabbing into his guts and other battle wounds.</p><p>     Ichigo wrapped the sweatshirt up in a ball and curled up on his bed, using the shirt instead of his pillow and burying his nose in the folds of fabric. He breathed in and imagined that he could still smell Hirako's particular scent of aftershave, sword oil and sweat sustained from constant sparring and chasing Hiyori around. It was almost like being back there, in the warehouse, surrounded by grim ex-soul reapers who had spent so much time in each other's company that they were on each other's last nerves constantly. That every other conversation was entirely inside jokes that he wasn't privy to and they chased each other around like children just to work off the energy that they had once upon a time spent in hollow hunting, battles and training their subordinates. It had gotten better over time, when like the day Hirako had lent him these clothes they had pulled him into their weird habits of attacking each other for reasons ranging from the semi-logical to the downright false accusations only made up on the spot to start a brawl. He'd started picking up the thread of some of their jokes, noticing patterns and even tentatively tossing out a comment of his own once or twice. Before the end he'd almost felt like one of them after all, despite his protests to the contrary at the time.</p><p>     For once Ichigo fell asleep quickly and didn't recall Aizen, Ulquiorra, Grimmjow or anyone else that had tried to kill him in his dreams. They were still bittersweet, and left him aching and unhappy when he woke, but for that brief span of time he felt almost complete again.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 2: Scent-obsession</p><p>so here's the part where the Scent-obsession really comes into it. Not much else to this chapter, I actually came back and added it after I thought I had most of the story planned out, that's why it's so short.</p><p>I also added over 500 words to chapter 1, but it's not a plot change or anything, just a little more detail in a few different places, so for people who don't like re-reading, it doesn't change the direction of the story.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     It very quickly became a habit, when he was too tired, just completely exhausted with everything. Ichigo would slip into Hirako's clothes and somehow that would always send him off to sleep without thoughts of his old enemies. No nightmare hollows with double jaws chasing him or maze-like white walls leading him in circles from one monster to another, he'd just be thinking about his Vizard friends. The family that he'd only just become a part of. It was always a bittersweet dream but those were infinitely better than the nightmares.</p><p>     The fabric of the shirt was ridiculously soft, it must have been expensive even though it was an eyesore, and it felt great against his skin in the way that you just knew it was quality. It was like sleeping in a cloud, and holding on to the sweatshirt was like a lifeline. He tried not to think 'security blanket' because that was embarrassing, he wasn't a little kid, but every time he stuck his nose in the folds of the fabric and breathed deep he was sure that he could smell Hirako here with him. Feeling as though a strong ally was beside him made it so much easier to sleep. Actually feeling safe in his own house was relieving in a way that Ichigo didn't think should be as profound as it was. He did feel safer here though, in the house which hadn't really been secure at all ever since a hollow had attacked him here and nearly killed his family, and another just days later had come in through the wall at him in this very room.</p><p>     Maybe he'd gotten too comfortable though, begun feeling too safe with thoughts of the Vizard's leader in his mind, because early one morning he woke up well before his alarm sounded. That was a first in recent months, either he slept until it went off and even then had difficulty dragging himself out of bed or he was up most of the night from nightmares and flashbacks. This time though, he woke up for a different reason, he was hard. Ichigo inhaled sharply, startled at being so fully awake and so suddenly. His heart was actually racing a bit, and he just stared for a moment at the dark shapes of his bedside table. He was laid out on his stomach with the purple sweatshirt balled up under his right arm where it curled around next to his head, and he could feel the hard throbbing between his legs becoming almost painfully insistent that it have his attention.</p><p>     Ichigo didn't know where this was coming from, he had vague memories of a dream, but the details had deserted him the moment his eyes had snapped open. Confused, and maybe a little disoriented, Ichigo slowly rolled over onto his back, dragging the covers across half the bed and the sweatshirt onto his chest as he pulled his left arm out from under his back. Staring up at the ceiling in the darkness Ichigo's right hand left the loose ball of fabric on his chest and slid into his sweatpants, starting to stroke himself blindly as his eyes never left the ceiling.</p><p>     The touch and slide made his body jolt a little in shock because it had been so long since he'd felt any desire for this with how depressed he'd been recently. When he gasped it sounded shockingly loud in the silence and Ichigo's left hand had shoved the sweatshirt into his face to muffle the sound before he'd really even thought about it. Another deep breath through the fabric and Ichigo's body bowed nearly off the bed when electricity raced through his spine and a vision of Hirako with his sword in his hand and a leering grin on his face flashed into his mind. Ichigo came hard with just a few more strokes, breathing harshly with the scent of the borrowed sweatshirt in his nose and one hand clasped tightly in the fabric to keep it right there over his face. The blank ceiling wasn't what he was seeing anymore, just the blonde Vizard, memories from when Ichigo was training with him or sparring. Then there was the time after the Vizard's had gotten Kisuke to install one of his healing springs in their warehouse and Ichigo had seen Hirako slide into the water...</p><p>     He snapped his eyes closed as if that could block the image from his mind even while his length twitched in his hand and he reflexively squeezed himself, his oversensitive flesh sending shudders through the rest of his body. Ichigo panted hard and then dragged the fabric away from his face, hoping that it would dispel the images but the cold air that hit his face and lungs flooded him with anxieties and he shivered at the sudden exposure, shoving the fabric back into place while his re-opened eyes teared up for some reason. He just laid there breathing until he'd calmed down again, internally freaking out about what had just happened and what the Hell it meant.</p><p>     Eventually he'd pulled himself together enough to clean himself up and curled back up under his covers, the sweatshirt still in his arms and a familiar scowl on his face. Ichigo didn't know what that had been about but he was determined to forget all about it. He blinked and let his eyelids droop as the early hour blinked at him on his alarm clock, and then settled more comfortably into his bed, nose unconsciously seeking out the sweatshirt in his arms and taking in the familiar and remembered scent of it. Ichigo was asleep again in seconds and by the time he woke up the next day he could barely remember the details of the night. A memory which would fade even further with time until something prompted it's return.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So, I changed my mind. I actually hadn't heard that they're making BURN THE WITCH into an animation and writing more chapters for this summer until like 2 days after I posted chapter 1 here, so I want to actually get as far as the chapter where BURN THE WITCH has ANYTHING at all to do with this story before then, assuming it's not all delayed or anything. Anyway, I've written chapter 8 by now but I'm not really satisfied with it, so technically just 10 and 11 to finish writing. So I'm going to be posting several chapters in April and May.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     It was a different kind of exhaustion that weighed him down after Ichigo had gotten his powers back. It had all been a rush of one calamity after another, the Xcution, the Blood War. Having to remake his zanpakutō and train in the Soul King's Palace and fighting a warrior that was more than a thousand years old. He didn't want to be included in their world any more, that was the realization he had come to after Yhwach was placed on the throne. The manipulations and plans going on around him, people he'd once thought of as friends actually circling him like sharks and just waiting for him to fall into the teeming sea of their plans. The friends that were just as ignorant as he was of how a society of warriors who lived for centuries ran their lives, who had sat back and done as they were told even though they could clearly see that he'd been drowning. His own father turning people against him, as though he thought he knew better than Ichigo did how to handle his own life, when he hadn't been responsible for Ichigo's well-being for nearly a decade now.</p><p>     Ichigo wanted to get away from it all, and he thought that he'd finally found a way. He just had to find out if he'd be 'allowed' to leave. He was starting to get the feeling that half the people he'd met since the day Rukia stepped through his wall were secretly watching him, keeping an eye on him and planning something for him. He'd heard a few discreet stories about the sort of thing Yoruichi's old Onmitsukido unit did to people who didn't align with the Gotei, and Captain Commander Kyoraku might be more friendly and seem to be more reasonable than his predecessor but Ichigo didn't think he'd be able to go back to being so innocent that he <em>didn't</em> look over his shoulder for traitors and backstabbers and hidden enemies.</p><p>     He wasn't that naive. If there were still Quincy out there that had been aligned with Yhwach's faction then he'd probably made himself some enemies, survivors who blamed him for their failure to grab power or who had lost loved ones. People like Shuusuke Amagai, who had wanted Yamamoto dead for the former Captain Commander's hand in his father's death. That was only one conflict, and though he thought that he'd done better about talking his enemies around on earlier occasions, who really knew? There could be one more Bout out there somewhere, that hadn't joined Kariya's fight but hadn't wanted them to fail, or another member of the Ryōdoji Clan roaming free and hiding away just biding time and building a following. That wasn't even to mention people who could manipulate memories that might not even be remembered by anyone at the moment, that had happened before.</p><p>     Enemies aside, there was always the chance that someone he thought he could trust might change their opinion of him, and decide that Ichigo couldn't be trusted. Maybe if he took a page out of those enemies books, and distanced himself from Soul Society then they would forget about him, at least let the memory of what he was capable of dull until they 'forgot' that he could be a threat to them if he even had the tiniest inclination to be so.</p><p>     So back to finding out if his life was really his own. Ichigo thought it would be safest to broach the subject with another man who was about as distant from the Gotei 13 as he could be, having been a captain among them at one point anyway. The fact that the man in question had also been something of a safe fixture in his mind for the last two years <em>might</em> have had something to do with his choice of target but Ichigo didn't like to think about that.</p><p>     “I was thinking of studying in England, learn the literature from the source.” Ichigo said as a way of broaching the subject, college was a legitimate excuse in the living world, even if most of the Gotei wouldn't have a clue what the word even meant.</p><p>     He was telling the truth, studying Shakespeare in the man's own country (even centuries later) would be more meaningful and maybe even garner more in depth instruction, but he wasn't going to major in Shakespeare alone. He could study anywhere, but England was as far away from Japan as he could think of to go.</p><p>     “I've got a flat in London.” Hirako mused in a far off tone that left Ichigo taken aback.</p><p>     It was a bit of a non-sequitur to him, what did Hirako's living arrangements have to do with anything? Unless it meant that Soul Society was as easily able to reach Ichigo in England as they were here in Japan. Seeing his blank look Hirako shook himself and grinned that way he did when he was covering some other feeling.</p><p>     “I mean the Vizards don't stick around one place more than a few years, we've been thinkin' about leavin' town for a while. We could head back to England, if ya' want a place ta' stay.” The words were lighter than the sentiment lurking behind them, Ichigo had learned a bit better over the past few years than to take a centuries old veteran soul reaper's words at face value.</p><p>     He thought he knew what the sentiment was though, and it recalled him to some of his first interactions with Hirako and the other Vizards. All that clannish 'one of us' stuff, more like they actually couldn't stand it if he wasn't among them than that they didn't want him to be like them without joining up.</p><p>     “Whatever” he tried, playing off the (offer?) of company and a place to stay as well as the confusing warm feelings it was giving him that he did <em>not</em> want to explore right now. “I just meant that I'd be going to school <em>not here.</em>”</p><p>     Hirako's smirk was more of the 'I see what you did there' variety now, but all he said was “it is nice ta' get a change of scenery every once in a while” like he was agreeing with Ichigo about something unsaid.</p><p>     Ichigo was left with the notion that his attempt to feel out someone else's reaction had been turned around on him somehow, that he'd confirmed something for Hirako, but he didn't know quite what he'd possibly just agreed to. Apparently he hadn't gotten as good at this reading people stuff as he'd thought.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So this is the last of the first three chapters, which were actually a separate story to begin with before I thought of adding BURN THE WITCH to the story, next chapter we actually get to London!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 2: Scent-obsession</p><p>and technically we're in London now! yay~ (also finished the last chapters, so there's that to look forward to!)</p><p>WARNING: Panic attack</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     Waking up from another nightmare and flailing out of bed after only two hours of sleep, following a week of sleepless nights, left Ichigo panting and exhausted where he lay on the floor between his bed and the wall. He stared up at the dark ceiling, lit with faint stripes from the blinds over the apartment window beside him, until he heard the door creak open.</p><p>     He tensed up, shaky muscles ready to fling him off his back and up into a fighting crouch if a threat entered the room, but Shinji just stuck his head in and asked in a whisper if he needed anything. Ichigo closed his eyes briefly as his muscles relaxed but had to open them again immediately when Ulquiorra's dead eyes stared back at him from only inches away, a burning phantom pain hitting his chest.</p><p>     Ichigo coughed, feeling like something was obstructing his breathing suddenly, and his fist thumped against his chest (where there wasn't a gaping hole, there <em>wasn't</em>) as though that would do anything to help. The pounding became clawing as his whole body shook and lurched, until he rolled onto his side and started curling in on himself. He couldn't get enough air to breathe- he couldn't-</p><p>     Shinji must have entered when he heard the obvious sounds of distress because suddenly there were hands on him, but he was too incapacitated to fight back right away. Before he could gather himself to do so he'd been pulled into Shinji's arms, his back to Shinji's chest as the man grabbed his wrists to pull Ichigo's hands away from his chest. Eventually Shinji's hands were pressed against his undamaged chest and he was breathing in an exaggerated way that Ichigo could feel through his back. Shinji didn't have to tell him to follow his breathing, the direction was intuitive enough and Ichigo let his eyes slide closed as he leaned into the feeling of Shinji's hand rubbing over the spot on his chest that he couldn't stop imagining tearing open into a gaping chasm. There was no Ulquiorra in the dark this time, Shinji's presence so close to him was grounding him and dispelling the nightmare.</p><p>     Finally, so weary that he couldn't lift his head, he could breathe at least. The shaking started up next, or at least that's when he noticed it taking over his whole body. He hated this, getting so upset, so panicked that he couldn't control his own body and needing Shinji to take care of him.</p><p>     He hadn't expected Shinji to help him, not with moving or housing and especially not with a few dreams but he'd been stepping in every night to do <em>something</em>. Bringing him tea or helping him change sweat-soaked sheets without a joke or even a word in the moment or later to even mark the occurrences. It was completely unexpected after everyone had left him alone <em>before</em> and strangely it was only now that he wasn't so alone that the nightmares were becoming full-blown panic attacks like this one. He'd been able to keep himself quiet when he was still living with his sisters, but now that it was just himself and Shinji in the apartment he was waking from another terror every night and finding himself leaning on Shinji's support more and more.</p><p>***</p><p>     Shinji looked down at the orange spikes just inches away from his face. Ichigo's hair was limp and damp with sweat, he could see the difference even in the semi-darkness. It seemed like Ichigo was finally breathing properly again though, and the way Ichigo was slumped listlessly against him signaled that he was recovered enough to give in to his exhaustion after that panic attack.</p><p>     Shinji kept his hand on Ichigo's chest for a while longer though, Ichigo's preoccupation with the spot bothering him. The fast thump of his heartbeat was easy to feel under his hand, but he didn't think it was his heart that had been upsetting the younger man. It was also the location of every soul's soul chain.</p><p>     It was late, and Ichigo needed more sleep than he'd been getting, so Shinji shook off his thoughts and nudged the redhead around. He lifted Ichigo's weight and helped him back onto the edge of his bed, intending to pull the sheet back over him and tuck him in so that he could fall asleep again. Instead Shinji was startled to find himself yanked down into the bed, Ichigo rolling them both over until he had Shinji somewhat pinned beneath him.</p><p>     Ichigo practically collapsed on top of him after the sudden burst of strength waned and Shinji stayed right where he was. He was too ashamed of his own part in putting the burden of defeating Aizen on the young man to refuse him whatever he needed to find comfort and safety now. If Ichigo wanted him to stay while he slept then he would, it was the least that he could do to support the man now.</p><p>     Thinking that Ichigo was still asleep left Shinji surprised when Ichigo's head turned in toward him, eyes still closed, and he breathed in deeply enough that Shinji felt a little squished beneath his expanding chest. After that breath Ichigo relaxed completely, almost boneless, and Shinji just knew that he <em>was</em> asleep now.</p><p>     This, whatever this was, Shinji had noticed ever since they had moved in together a few months ago. Albeit, this week had been the worst by far since they'd sorted out their living arrangements, but he had never noticed Ichigo being particularly prone to smelling anyone <em>before</em> the two of them had become roommates.</p><p>     So it was a new development then, Ichigo's thing for smelling him. Every time Shinji helped him after a nightmare the younger man would bury his face in Shinji's shoulder or chest or anywhere on him that he could reach and just breathe, taking in his scent. There were even times during the day, if Shinji got too close to him, that he caught Ichigo taking a deeper breath. He'd also been noticing that Ichigo liked to do the laundry whenever he had the time amid his busy schedule, both of their laundry. Shinji wasn't sure what he was doing exactly, since none of his clothes or bed sheets ever went missing, but it was still a bit odd. It worried him, honestly, it seemed like behavior that the younger man's inner hollow might be encouraging. After everything Ichigo had been through with his powers, his spirits though, Shinji couldn't believe that the three of them weren't unified. So Shinji just didn't know what to make of it, this new habit that Ichigo had of smelling him and immediately calming down.</p><p>     Still, he wouldn't ask if Ichigo didn't want to explain. He owed the younger man too much to complain, or to not <em>trust</em> him. Ichigo deserved better than that, he deserved proper support and affection, and for the people he surrounded himself with to treat him with dignity and respect.</p><p>     Ichigo had been right to think that distancing himself from Soul Society, and the Gotei's jurisdiction would be a good idea, the nobles had already been making a fuss about just how many powerful souls weren't under their command. The Vizards had even been offered their old captain and lieutenant positions back, or equal places of rank if those spots were taken, if they would only return to Soul Society where they could be watched over and controlled. Hearing about Ichigo's plans to leave Japan had been just the escape route that they all needed, to excuse themselves from the Gotei instead of the other way around and while he didn't like to think that he'd used Ichigo as an excuse, Shinji tried to explain it to himself as Ichigo being a Vizard as well. Being one of them, of course they all had to stick together, even if Ichigo was still only just being integrated into their not quite pack-like structure.</p><p>     Even though they had <em>abandoned</em> him for a time and he was still wary of getting too close to them again, how else could they make it up to him unless they stuck with him this time and protected him as best they could from a society that was so old fashioned even the kid's grandfather wouldn't have known how to navigate their politics?</p><p>     Shinji ran a hand up Ichigo's back, feeling the sweat-damp material under his fingers. He couldn't reach the sheet from here, so once the sweat cooled Ichigo would get cold. He'd probably wake up again in an hour or so, and if he didn't Shinji would have to try to move him, or he'd get too cold but for now Shinji just wrapped his arms around the redhead and let him sleep.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>the line 'even [Ichigo's] grandfather' is a generic sentiment, not actually referring to any real grandfather Ichigo might have, just meaning that someone two generations past would even still not know how to deal with how old fashioned soul society is... don't really know why I felt the need to clarify that... eh~ whatever.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 3: Reverse</p><p>There are a lot of notes at the end.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     “Is that my shirt?” Shinji asked first thing in the morning.</p><p>     Ichigo looked down at himself, noticing that he was wearing the by now well worn ugly purple sweatshirt that Shinji had lent him what was it, three years ago? He hadn't thought much of it when he'd pulled it on because he was still somewhat dull after the difficult night.</p><p>     “Uh... yeah. I guess it was.” He admitted, “do... you want it back?” He hated to ask, he didn't want to give the shirt back, but he knew it was the polite thing to say.</p><p>     Shinji gave him an appraising look with slightly lowered eyelids, it was weird the things he'd started noticing about the blonde, Ichigo thought as he waited for an answer. It honestly wasn't something that he knew what to do about, he didn't know why he was noticing all these little details about his roommate and friend.</p><p>     “No, that's fine, but I think ya' should go back to sleep, last night was pretty rough.” Shinji said.</p><p>     “I have classes.” Ichigo shook his head as he looked around for his backpack. He was sure that he'd packed everything up yesterday so that he'd be ready... there it was.</p><p>     “Ya' sure ya' can't skip it?” Shinji frowned while Ichigo stared back at him, heavy bag hanging from one shoulder.</p><p>     “There are too many papers due. I can't fall behind now, I'll never make up the work if I don't take this seriously.” Ichigo didn't even have time for breakfast, that was how much of a hurry he was in. Not that he thought he could stomach anything right now anyway, after last night.</p><p>     “Ya' know, I'm not sure purple is your color.” Shinji startled him with the comment, halting Ichigo long enough for the blonde to pass him a granola bar and bottle of water.</p><p>     Ichigo blinked down at his now full hands and then back at his roommate. The older Vizard had that serious look on his face that meant he was thinking deeply about something. Ichigo wasn't sure what that was about.</p><p>     “I can give it back.” Ichigo said again of the sweatshirt, not sure if Shinji had meant something else, or what that might be.</p><p>     “Nah, ya' should wear it ta' class.” Weirdly, Shinji stepped even closer to him and zipped the sweatshirt closed. “Ya' should wear it all day.”</p><p>    <em> 'That was weird, right?'</em> Ichigo asked himself later that day as his mind wandered away from the review he'd been trying to formulate in his mind of the professor's lecture. It had consisted of speculation on the lack of certainty about everything from Shakespeare's physical appearance and religious beliefs to whether or not he was the true writer of all of the works attributed to him had influenced the general perception of the works in question and their collective contribution to the face of the theatre.</p><p>     It was an interesting thing to think about, and ordinarily Ichigo would have had the first paragraph of his own essay already written out in his head, but he was so tired after a long day of classes, not to mention everything from last night and this morning, that he couldn't even focus on it. Instead he found his feet wandering toward the Cloverdilly Pub where the Vizards had taken to hanging out recently. They hadn't exactly invited him around, since they knew he preferred studying over drinking, but he'd seen them heading in and out of the place so he figured that if Shinji wasn't at home (and he rarely was at this time of evening) then the next best place to look for him would be this pub. After the day he had gone through, Ichigo really just wanted to go home with Shinji.</p><p>     Stepping into the slowly dimming pub Ichigo squinted into the crowd, scowling as he tried to make out a familiar face. He had to push through several small crowds until he could see the booths in the back but he finally found a flash of familiar colors. Blonde was a <em>lot</em> more common here than back in Karakura Town (and boy was that an understatement), but he felt as though he'd recognize Shinji's particular color anywhere.</p><p>     He was about to approach the group, sitting around a booth and laughing over drinks, Lisa leaning over the back of a seat and halfway into the next booth where some other patrons were looking back at her in surprise while Hiyori waved a sandal threateningly, when something else caught his attention and froze him where he stood. There was another blonde in the booth. A completely unfamiliar woman was practically wrapped around Shinji's arm while he grinned across the table at something Kensei had said. The woman had her blonde hair tied in weirdly haphazard braids and wore a leather jacket but Ichigo was too busy processing why the Hell his heart felt like it was breaking right now.</p><p>     He had feelings for Shinji. <em>'Since when?'</em> His mind demanded. Surely he would have noticed this before now of all times. Ichigo realized that this was what all those unfamiliar and confusing feelings he'd been getting were telling him, and that it was the reason he kept noticing all those details about the blonde's facial expressions and feelings.</p><p>     Before he could decide to approach or run back to the apartment and freak out about this an unfamiliar announcement in a very familiar tone interrupted. It sounded like his old combat pass, but the strange woman pulled out a badge that was repeating “Dragon! Dragon! Dragon!” As it flashed with light. No one but she and the Vizards could hear it, the rest of the pub completely oblivious, but the whole group got up to leave. The blonde woman was dragging Shinji along specifically.</p><p>     “It's about time I get to see you in action! I want to see what you can do Shinji, you better not let me down!” She insisted.</p><p>     “Annie, I told ya', Vizards an' Wizards aren't the same thing!” Shinji insisted, like it was an old argument.</p><p>     “That's not what I heard you tell the boss in the Government Protection Service, and I told you that I'm not a 'Substitute' Witch, but you don't take me seriously either!” This 'Annie' person complained with a smile as the group trouped out of the pub's back door.</p><p>     Ichigo didn't know what was going on, but he was more than tired of secrets being hidden from him by people that he thought he could trust, so he did his best to dampen his reiatsu (not that his attempt amounted to much since his control was still abysmal) and followed them at a distance. He was determined to see just what Shinji and the others were up to.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>And as you know this story was inspired by the ShinIchi Weekend 2020 prompts, well I don't think that Reverse London is what the prompt 'Reverse' meant, but ha. Now I can claim this chapter fits a prompt too!</p><p>The Cloverdilly Pub is from the movie Penelope, and apparently that pub is in real life known as the Crown and Sceptre pub. Now whether there's a college nearby I have no idea... eh~</p><p>Annie is also a character from Penelope, I don't like making up OC's if I can help it so since I'd already thought of the movie Penelope... and needed a blonde woman character... 1+1=2 and that sort of logic.</p><p>I don't really see this as a crossover or a fusion, so I'm unsure about tagging the movie though... ?</p><p>I'm not sure I understand why the West Branch of Soul Society has so little to do with the afterlife and ghosts, but I had three chapters of this story done, thought that might be a good place to end it if I couldn't get a fourth [smut] chapter written, and then suddenly decided that since this story is about Ichigo moving to London... well if ever he was going to find out about the West Branch this would be it right? And when Shinji's character was first introduced (as in the very first time I saw him) in the manga I had this idea that he was supposed to be a British guy, and then I thought that 'Vizard' was supposed to mean 'Wizard' and maybe there'd been one or more translation errors or something, so I decided to put the rest of this story together... and all this happened, so after I went back through BURN THE WITCH, well, this isn't going to be canon Wing Bind, I changed it all so that it seems more like the Japanese soul society because it just bothers me that dragons aren't ghosts, witches don't seem to be ghosts, are there even any ghosts? Then where DO the ghosts in London go? It's just TOO contradictory so I HAD to make it make sense to myself.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 4: Unexpected skill</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     Ichigo couldn't believe it.</p><p>     Dragon was right. That was an <em>actual</em> dragon chasing what looked like the ghost of a salaryman down the middle of the street. Thank goodness it was an empty street at the moment, or cars would be getting tossed through apartment windows right about now.</p><p>     Ichigo stood in shock as Shinji pulled what looked like a <em>rapier</em> out of thin air, it certainly wasn't Sakanade and he didn't think it was a Zanpakutou at all, while Kensei pulled a knife that likewise wasn't Tachikaze, and the others did the same. Shinji stepped up to engage the dragon as much as one person with a sword could duel with a dragon the size of a house, and Ichigo watched as his sword cut through the air like he'd been fighting with a western blade forever. The lunges and parries were entirely different from what he was used to seeing from sealed Zanpakutous and Ichigo was amazed by Shinji's skill with the blade he had barely been able to identify. Strange weapons, a strange woman, and a <em>dragon</em>. He really wanted to know what was going on here.</p><p>     No, actually, Ichigo really hoped that he'd been so tired that he'd fallen asleep in class and was even now drooling into his History of the Great Shakespearean Drama textbook. Getting yelled at by Professor Campion or even ignored and given an absent grade would be better than that long neck extending a head full of sharp teeth forward and those vast black wings, spreading out over the street like a giant bat-</p><p>     Ichigo stumbled back against the brick wall behind him, last night's dream coming back to him in a flash. Dead eyes that didn't belong on anyone who could move that fast, a clawed black hand forming a cero aimed right at him. The images kept coming until he'd collapsed, not even noticing the dragon turning from a strike of Love's sabre and stumbling toward where Ichigo had fallen.</p><p>     If he hadn't recognized his roommate's familiar scent he wouldn't have noticed Shinji dragging him out of the way as the huge body came down where he'd been just a moment before, Shinji's arm around his back as he leaned Ichigo against a section of brick nearly a block away. Ichigo gasped in a breath and nearly buried his head in Shinji's shoulder but remembered to pull back at the last second. Outside, other people, his weird habit was strange enough and he didn't need the rest of the Vizards giving him trouble about it.</p><p>     Suddenly there was a flash of light and two more girls were among the group, one dark haired in a schoolgirl uniform and the other blonde with her hair in pigtails. They had strange little horns that they used to fight the dragon as Ichigo watched from the unasked for but secretly welcome safety of Shinji's supporting arms. The dragon was defeated somehow, Ichigo wasn't really clear on what happened to it, his long day and lack of sleep thoroughly catching up to him.</p><p>     “Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh! It's Nini Spangle!” Annie gushed, racing toward the two new women. “I've seen your commercial so many times!”</p><p>     “Always nice to meet a fan!” The blonde English girl said with a full of herself tone as she turned to meet Annie.</p><p>     “Report please, Piper.” The dark haired girl cut in, to the obvious annoyance of her blonde partner.</p><p>     “Oh, well I got a warning of a dragon attack, but I happened to be close to the Vizards so we were just taking care of it ourselves.” Annie said to her a bit nervously as Nini scoffed and stomped over to most of the gathered Vizards.</p><p>     “Vizards, huh? I've heard about you. You're those foreign Wizards that don't know how to take proper care of dragons.” Nini said as she appraised the group.</p><p>     “Hey! We were handling it fine till you showed up. What'd you come butting in for anyway!” Hiyori shouted at the other blonde.</p><p>     Ichigo blinked at the entire exchange, trying to gather his feet beneath him properly so that Shinji would stop holding him up. He didn't know what was going on but he could at least stand on his own two feet. Apparently his attempts to distance himself from his roommate drew attention though, and the loud girl turned to point a finger at him.</p><p>     “Civilians aren't supposed to know about dragons, you should have gotten him out of here by now!” Nini snapped angrily, catching her dark haired partner's attention as well.</p><p>     “He's one of us dumbass! Just 'cuz he's goin' to school he doesn't have time for dragon slaying.” Hiyori shouted.</p><p>     “Hey, both of ya' can calm down, we took care of the dragon alright.” Shinji raised both hands, now free, and stepped closer to try to placate the shorter blondes.</p><p>     “Shut up, baldy!” They said in unison, and Ichigo stared in horror.</p><p>     <em>'Are there two Hiyori's?'</em> Was his thought, and then: <em>'The world must be coming to an end.'</em> Shaking off the melodramatic thought he tuned back into the exchange of words.</p><p>     “Nini, come on I'm only-” Shinji started, only to suddenly dodge a sandal to the face from Hiyori when he turned to the English girl. She smirked and tossed her hair as she disregarded Shinji's attempts to avoid Hiyori's sudden assault.</p><p>     “Come on, Noel! I want to get this dragon back to the Squad before the Sabre's try to claim the collar!” Nini called to her companion.</p><p>     The two of them disappeared abruptly on strange flying creatures and Ichigo was starting to lean heavily on the wish that he was asleep on his textbook. Dragons, flying girls, and that ghost guy was still hiding over there- oh. Annie was taking care of that. Apparently she had one of those horn things and when she blew some particular series of notes the ghost-</p><p>     <em>'did he just turn into a coin?'</em> Ichigo blinked hard. He was seriously sleep deprived if the coin she was now flipping in one hand was a <em>soul</em>.</p><p>     “Hey, got another coin for the Phone Gate?” Rose asked Annie as she strolled back to them. “One of us should be present when they report back or Nini might just blame us for something.”</p><p>     “Hmm, just this one.” Annie said with a look at the coin. “Oh! We can probably squeeze in together!” She said with a predatory grin that Rose leaned away from slightly.</p><p>     In the end he followed her into a phone booth with a resigned air and Ichigo watched as the whole thing slid right into the ground and disappeared. Finally having enough of being an observer no matter how tired he was, Ichigo turned to the Vizards and demanded an answer to his questions. Gathering together around him the remaining Vizards started putting away their strange (not Zanpakutou) swords and exchanging looks.</p><p>     “Let's go back to the pub, we can talk there, right?” Love suggested.</p><p>     Ichigo obstinately followed as they trouped back to the pub, although to an outsider he looked more like a puppy. Plodding along with his friends and dragging his feet from exhaustion rather than contrariness. He just wanted some answers, was that really too much to ask?</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>'History of the Great Shakespearean Drama' is just a group of words I strung together, if that's a book that exists it's a coincidence.<br/>and the 'Professor Campion' is from the character Max Campion from the same movie (Penelope) that Annie is from. I didn't tag him because he isn't actually shown/described in the story, I just needed a random name.</p><p>As for the 'Unexpected Skill' prompt, I intended to have Shinji be a talented fencer as it would be a different sword style... but the scene went in a different direction as I was writing it and I didn't have a chance to really describe it much, darn!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 3: “You don't get to decide what is best for me.”</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     Once they were back inside the Cloverdilly Pub and the Vizards had resumed their apparently usual booth seats, Ichigo demanded his answers once again, trying valiantly not to sink into the comfortable softness of the buttery leather that made him think longingly of his comfortable bed at home.</p><p>     “There are ghosts here?” Ichigo asked in bewilderment as he looked around at Shinji while the rest of the group resumed drinking.</p><p>     Shinji didn't speak at first and then he saw that they were all looking around at him, somewhat guiltily like he'd caught them at something... Wait, that's exactly what just happened, man he was tired.</p><p>     “Well of course there are. You can't go anywhere there is a large population of living souls without finding a few souls that weren't ready to die.” Kensei barked when no one spoke up right away.</p><p>     “We were trying to keep you out of it, we didn't want to bother you after everything that went on back in Karakura.” Shinji admitted finally, his voice quiet even in the noisy pub.</p><p>     “You don't get to decide what is best for me.” Ichigo said automatically, irritated that his roommate thought that he couldn't handle just knowing what was going on.</p><p>     “Maybe not, but to be fair, you didn't even notice anything strange going on until now.” Hachi suggested mildly.</p><p>     Ichigo frowned at that, trying to determine whether or not that had any relevance since the lot of them would have been hiding all this so of course he wouldn't notice and that made it also their fault that he didn't...<em> 'I'm too tired for this.'</em> He realized in irritation.</p><p>     He must have said that out loud, because the whole group looked relieved, and Shinji was nudging him out of the booth and saying something about getting him into bed. <em>'Wait, I must have heard that wrong.'</em> Ichigo thought, hoping he didn't say <em>that</em> out loud. Wait, what exactly was his tired mind implying there anyway? Damn, he'd picked the wrong night to realize he had feelings for his roommate.</p><p>     Getting back to the apartment took a while, Ichigo was leaning heavily against Shinji by the time they got there, just wanting to go to sleep but too frustrated not to demand further answers from Shinji now that they were alone.</p><p>     “How exactly did I not notice anything strange going on? I know when you guys are hiding things, how'd you fool me?” Ichigo asked.</p><p>     “Well ya' weren't lookin' for anything out of the ordinary, and ya've been busy with school.” Shinji said as he stole Ichigo's backpack and steered him toward his bedroom.</p><p>     “I didn't notice <em>Dragons</em> attacking people all over town?” Ichigo complained as he found himself sitting on his freshly made bed (he'd left it unmade this morning, hadn't he?) while Shinji untied his shoes for him.</p><p>     “Ya've never been great at sensen' other's reiatsu, an' this may have helped with blockin' it from ya'.” Shinji said at last, twirling Ichigo's key-ring around one of his fingers.</p><p>     Ichigo blinked at the keys, catching sight of a flash of red and remembering the key-chain that Shinji had given him attached to the apartment key when he'd moved in. <em>'So the key-chain is what, a reiatsu dampener or something?'</em> Ichigo wondered... he didn't know how that would work.</p><p>     “Anyway, ya' didn't want anythin' ta' do with Soul Society right? At least not right now, so... figured we'd leave ya' out of it.” Shinji said in resignation as he tossed the keys on the bedside table and the shoes toward his closet.</p><p>     “That's... <em>thoughtful</em>... and all but I don't need your protection.” Ichigo insisted as Shinji pushed him around until he was under the bed covers. “I can make my own choices.”</p><p>     “Ichigo, you're exhausted. All the time because ya' keep having nightmares. Ya' barely even talk about it, and you're trying to balance school on top of it.” Shinji said exasperatedly. “I can pay your bills and keep ya' safe if it will make your life just a little easier. It's the least any of us can do for one of our own.”</p><p>     “Oh.” Ichigo said intelligently, not having thought about it that way before.</p><p>     <em>'So they're all trying to protect me?'</em> He wondered as he stared up at Shinji's serious face in the dark.</p><p>     He hadn't liked that idea at all when he was younger, and he hated being kept in the dark now that he understood more of what went on in Soul Society, but he supposed that the sentiment appealed to him at least a little bit now. Ichigo wouldn't mind staying out of the<em> fighting Dragons</em> business and focusing on school as long as everyone else could handle it without him, he just didn't like that they'd been keeping it a secret.</p><p>     “Fine... but you better explain tomorrow.” Ichigo decided, and then some part of him remembered something of last night's events and he grabbed Shinji and dragged him into the bed again, not really stopping to think about his actions.</p><p>     Burying his nose in Shinji's neck he breathed in deeply and let himself be soothed to sleep.</p><p>***</p><p>     So this was a thing now. Okay.</p><p>     Shinji stared up at the ceiling once again as Ichigo's warm weight relaxed against him, feeling the tickle of the younger man's breath against his throat. It didn't seem threatening, which is what he usually felt when someone (even a Vizard) got close to his throat.</p><p>     Shifting around carefully he pulled off his own shoes and got comfortable, letting himself drift off toward sleep as well while he held the redhead close. Having to explain the Vizard's connections to Wing Bind tomorrow was going to be a long talk, and he could definitely use the extra sleep.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I've changed some things to make the things from BURN THE WITCH line up a bit more as counterparts of Soul Society... since it's supposedly the 'west branch' of soul society... I just figured it should actually serve the same function...?</p>
<p>And I realize that this story was probably the perfect place for the “Quoting Shakespeare isn't getting you out of this one” prompt, but I don't know any Shakespeare quotes and didn't feel like looking for one... ~</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     He'd actually slept through the night. Finally after a week of bad nights Ichigo woke feeling mostly alive and at least half-way awake. He smiled to himself into the cloth his face was buried in, only belatedly realizing that it wasn't a pillow because it was breathing. Startled by the realization he froze, the familiar scent prompting his mind into slowly recalling that he'd dragged Shinji into bed with him last night. Embarrassed, Ichigo tilted his head up, hoping to see that Shinji was still asleep and Ichigo would be able to slip out of bed before the blonde awoke and could tease him about it. He'd been so exhausted that he didn't actually remember that this wasn't the first time he had done as much, since Shinji had always slipped out of the bed on prior occasions and left Ichigo to wake up alone.</p>
<p>     “Comfortable?” Shinji greeted him as their eyes met, and Ichigo felt himself blushing in response.</p>
<p>     “I- I'm not-” Ichigo stuttered, unsure of what to do and whether he should move away from Shinji as fast as he could.</p>
<p>     “I dunno, ya' look comfortable.” Shinji said with a grin, and Ichigo knew that Shinji knew he'd only been stuttering and not actually saying no.</p>
<p>     “Shut up!” Ichigo would have shouted but his mouth was too dry.</p>
<p>     “Ya' feel comfortable too.” Shinji teased with a nudge of his thigh between Ichigo's legs.</p>
<p>     “Shut up!” Ichigo whined again, burying his face back in Shinji's chest which might have been counterproductive if he was trying to divert Shinji's attention from his hardness but Ichigo was suddenly completely unsure of what to do.</p>
<p>     “Okay, okay. Ya' want me to get out? We've got to meet the others if you want to hear about the Dragons.” Shinji changed the subject amicably, and when Ichigo nodded against his chest he slid his leg away from Ichigo's own and got out of bed while Ichigo hid in the sheets until he heard the door close.</p>
<p>     Ichigo couldn't believe that he'd actually woken up like this and embarrassed himself in front of Shinji, he'd only just last night realized that he had feelings for his roommate and now Shinji already knew about it! He didn't know how the situation could get any worse.</p>
<p>     It took him a while to get out of bed, but Shinji didn't comment on his delay or the shower he'd taken before slipping into some comfortable clothes that included Shinji's purple sweatshirt. It looked like Shinji had taken the time to eat breakfast though, and Ichigo made a quick piece of toast before they left the apartment. They didn't return to the pub, instead taking a longer walk to Rose's flat, which was a top floor space that almost looked like a penthouse though that was largely down to the way he'd decorated rather than the architecture. It was where the rest of the Vizards had already gathered and were in the midst of another over the top argument over currency conversion rates which was at least a reasonable thing to talk about though Ichigo had no idea why they were on the topic. Their discussion broke up as soon as Ichigo sat down on one of the sofas, with Shinji next to him and Lisa already taking the other end.</p>
<p>     “So, what's going on here?” Ichigo asked right away.</p>
<p>     The Vizards exchanged looks before Kensei started with the ghosts bit again.</p>
<p>     “Well like anywhere else, not everyone moves on right away. Here in England, they've got their own Soul Society for their people which is called Reverse London, and Witches and Wizards are the equivalent of Soul Reapers who bring lost souls from Front London to Reverse London.” Kensei explained.</p>
<p>     “The Witches and Wizards work for Wing Bind. They aren't as large as the Gotei, they have fewer divisions that aren't usually referred to by their numbers because they've all been dubbed with more publicly friendly names.” Rose offered the words along with tea, and an assortment of breakfast foods laid out on the coffee table between them all.</p>
<p>     “First is the Government Protection Service, their Squad 1, which keeps Reverse London organized and secure as well as directing the other squads.” Lisa explained as she flipped through a book without looking up.</p>
<p>     “Then there's the Tactics Squad, who are in charge of drawing and enforcing the lines and boundaries of both the dragon's range/roaming areas as well as patrol routs for Witches and Wizards doing their jobs, like the Sabres.” Hachi murmured.</p>
<p>     “The Sabres are the ones who patrol for souls and do the most Dragon fighting, that's why they're named after the special Sabres that they carry, which have different properties than zanpakutou. They don't have sword spirits here and don't actually know that our swords do.” Mashiro piped up.</p>
<p>     “Conservation Rangers are Squad 4, they help reclaim the Dragons into the souls they once were as well as keeping Reverse Londoners healthy.” Love chimed in.</p>
<p>     “Pipers are the last squad, the three Witches you saw last night were all Pipers, and they're often used as support for both Conservation Rangers and Sabres because they have more versatile means of travel and can use those horns to both lull Dragons to sleep and outright attack them. Really they're only limited by their own power, it's a broader range weapon.” Shinji explained from beside him, and Ichigo was really getting overwhelmed.</p>
<p>     This was a lot of information, an entirely different Soul Society, and powers that were nothing like the soul reapers he knew was all just a lot to take in.</p>
<p>     “So Dragons are like Hollows?” Ichigo asked, just to make sure he understood this correctly.</p>
<p>     “Yes, and humans who can see Dragons are called Dragon-Posessed, but they're really just normal spiritually aware humans.” Hachi said.</p>
<p>     “Did that woman turn the ghost into a coin?” Ichigo asked faintly, hoping he'd just been too bleary eyed to see that right.</p>
<p>     “Yes, because the Witches and Wizards bring the souls to Reverse London directly through the Phone Gate, instead of our Jigokuchō and Senkaimon. It's a derivative of an old religion where people buried their dead with a coin so that they could pay a toll to pass across a river and into their Soul Society.” Rose answered again, and Ichigo thought he knew that coin thing from somewhere, but he couldn't think of it at the moment.</p>
<p>     It was more than he'd honestly expected to learn from this conversation, though he didn't know why he was having such a hard time believing it. Ichigo looked around at the Vizards observing him and wondered what <em>they</em> were thinking. He supposed that their own name, Vizards, was probably influenced by their time here in London just like what that Annie woman had said. It probably helped them work with Wing Bind if the Wizards thought that they were just Wizards from another country, not that Ichigo felt great about deception like that but he'd gotten pretty tired of his open honesty being taken advantage of so he supposed he could go along with it.</p>
<p>     Ichigo picked at a pastry he'd taken from the table, unsure of what to say, and let the Vizards devolve into their cheerful chaos around him while Shinji's arm slipped over his shoulders almost unnoticed.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So yeah, all that stuff about 5 squads and dragons being hollows is NOT canon, there are 2 squads, and Reverse London doesn't seem to have ANYTHING AT ALL to do with the afterlife or spirits/ghosts, though it does seem like they deal with soul damage sometimes.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     “So, you're okay with all of this?” Shinji asked as they made their way through the crowded London streets and back toward the apartment.</p>
<p>     Ichigo glanced aside at him and nodded briefly then sighed as he craned his head back to look up at the grey sky.</p>
<p>     “Well most of the details don't have anything to do with why I was upset, and I suppose I get why you kept it to yourselves.” Ichigo scowled as he admitted “I guess I have had a lot of my own problems to deal with, so I can appreciate not being dragged into anything else. I just don't like the idea that you all have been doing... Soul Society business of any kind really, because how do you know <em>you</em> won't be dragged into something? And then I'd <em>have</em> to get involved.”</p>
<p>     “Ha!” Shinji barked a laugh and bumped their shoulders together hard enough to make Ichigo stumble.</p>
<p>     “You mean you'd swoop in and save us if we ran into a Dragon we couldn't handle? Knight in shining armor and all that? My hero!” Shinji teased while Ichigo's scowl deepened further.</p>
<p>     “It's not a joke, after everything-!” Ichigo's furious words were cut off by Shinji throwing an arm over his shoulders and dragging him close and Ichigo inhaled sharply in surprised reflex, calming down immediately.</p>
<p>     “Relax, I know what you mean. Looks like we're gonna have ta' show ya' we actually can take care of ourselves when we're not facing backstabbing traitors.” Shinji said more softly, expression earnest.</p>
<p>     “So, what's <em>really</em> still got you bothered? I'm sure that there is something else, because I know it's not just the work we've been doing, you would have been making these points to the others if it was the <em>work</em>.” Shinji asked, arm still wrapped tightly around him.</p>
<p>     Ichigo couldn't help admitting the truth when he was surrounded and bombarded with that familiar, comforting scent. “That woman, Annie? She was... all over you.”</p>
<p>     He couldn't meet Shinji's eyes, and he shivered at the thought of Shinji getting angry about him complaining. They were just roommates, it wasn't any of his business who was all over the blonde.</p>
<p>     <em>'Wait,</em> 'just'? <em>As in I want us to be something more?'</em> Ichigo suddenly wondered at his own thoughts, honestly having no idea where this was coming from. At least, that's what he thought, and told himself despite his recognition of his feelings last night and this morning all he really wanted was the roommate he'd grown accustomed to.</p>
<p>     Risking a glance over at the blonde, Ichigo saw that he was being observed by the older, far more experienced man. Not the prankster that Shinji more often portrayed himself as.</p>
<p>     “Annie's just an acquaintance.” Shinji said seriously, and then with an evil grin “she's more interested in Rose anyway.”</p>
<p>     “You're just waiting for a good opportunity to throw him under the bus aren't you?” Ichigo asked while knowing that he was correct about Shinji's intentions.</p>
<p>     “Ya' sure know me well Ichigo!” Shinji agreed wholeheartedly.</p>
<p>     The conversation drifted off into comfortable silence for a while and Ichigo felt immense relief knowing that Shinji had no interest in that blonde woman. He was lost in thought, revisiting his possible (and groundbreaking) revelation that <em>he</em> was interested in Shinji. He was so distracted that he didn't even realize that they had made it back to the apartment until after Shinji had unlocked the door and pulled him along inside with one arm still over his shoulders. Looking up and around to take in his surroundings Ichigo was unprepared for Shinji's next words.</p>
<p>     “So, ya' were jealous of Annie?” The blonde asked with a less evil but still devilish grin.</p>
<p>     As Ichigo spluttered and tried to deny it, which was hard given the direction his thoughts had just taken a moment ago, the blonde shut him up quite thoroughly. Shinji dragged Ichigo in closer so that they were nearly chest to chest and buried his own face in Ichigo's neck and shoulder, breathing in an exaggerated inhale and exhale before looking up at him with his head still on his shoulder.</p>
<p>     “Is that what this is all about?” He asked and Ichigo fought unsuccessfully against a blush.</p>
<p>     Damnit, he'd hoped that Shinji hadn't noticed too much of that outside of this morning, even though he'd known it was wishful thinking, his luck wasn't that good.</p>
<p>     “That's... I...” He didn't want to explain it, he didn't even know how it had gotten so carried away that he was still doing that even after he'd gotten his powers back and had friends surrounding him again. Heck, friends that were as strangely and inexplicably close as the Vizards were, whatever they were. He really didn't know.</p>
<p>     “I don't know why I do that.” He shifted in Shinji's arms uncomfortably. Well, he was comfortable there, he was just uncomfortable in his embarrassment.</p>
<p>     “I know how it started, but... it just kept on even after everyone came back.” Ichigo admitted to Shinji's sudden frown.</p>
<p>     “I just feel better.” Ichigo said as he looked away.</p>
<p>     “Safer.” He mumbled to the floor.</p>
<p>     “Like I'm not alone.” Ichigo bit his lip and then forced himself to stop, instead of his trademark scowl his face was open and vulnerable.</p>
<p>     “Because you're here with me.” It was more of a whisper at his point, his voice, and Ichigo shook himself out of whatever this was.</p>
<p>     “It's stupid.” He forced himself to say, body tensing up as he got ready to brush off the whole thing and shove it all back into wherever it had suddenly poured out from.</p>
<p>     “It isn't stupid, pretty honest really.” Shinji clunked their foreheads together to knock Ichigo's head back enough to meet his eyes.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p>     “It was just, it was like a lifeline, when everyone was just <em>gone</em>. It just reminded me that people used to care about me.” Ichigo said, dark brown eyes still staring up into his own.</p>
<p>     Shinji kept the feelings he was experiencing thanks to those words off of his face,<em> 'used to care'</em> really, as if he had stopped caring about Ichigo. Shinji could never stop caring about Ichigo, he cared too much, he tried to hold back and just be the support that Ichigo needed but sometimes he just couldn't stop thinking about the damaged young man. Especially days like today when he actually wore Shinji's clothing. The faded purple sweatshirt was probably Shinji's favorite garment now, despite being all worn out, just because he'd owned it and Ichigo now wore it.</p>
<p>     So, hearing that Ichigo liked wearing his shirt and smelling his scent because he needed to feel like someone cared about him was both a terrible blow and wonderful surprise because Shinji was glad that <em>he</em> was the one Ichigo felt safe and cared for by. It made it harder to hold back, but Shinji was starting to think that wouldn't be a problem.</p>
<p>     “I didn't stop caring about you Ichigo.” Shinji insisted quietly. “I'm sorry that our actions and inaction made it look that way, but we do care about you.”</p>
<p>     “I... I know.” Ichigo stuttered, looking up at him sadly.</p>
<p>     He didn't know.</p>
<p>     Shinji had been patient and he'd been supportive, and he only knew one other way to express what he meant. Ichigo could (and would) easily punch him in the face if he didn't like Shinji's next move, so that was fine. He still had an arm around Ichigo anyway, so he got a grip on the purple sweatshirt and backed Ichigo against the front door, to Ichigo's apparent surprise. Leaning over into the younger man's space, he certainly didn't miss the way Ichigo took a deep breath of him and calmed down, relaxing in his arms. Shinji leaned closer, and saw Ichigo's eyes darting up to lock onto his own in the moment their lips met.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Meant to post this last week sometime... oh well. So Chapter 10 will be posted on the 7th, and then the VERY short epilogue will be posted the next day. :D</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 2: Scent-obsession</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     Ichigo wasn't quite sure how they'd gotten here. He remembered leaving Rose's apartment, and talking to Shinji, finally explaining his weird scent-obsession. How things went from him admitting how desperate he'd gotten for any kind of perceived companionship to experiencing his first real kiss was where his mind was drawing a blank. Ichigo knew that his lips had touched other people's lips before, people his own age, boys and girls (he had been a <em>teenager</em>, even if not a very sane one). Those fumbling experiments were nothing like this, Shinji's tongue was literally filling his mouth, sliding all over him and twisting around his own tongue. The ring through Shinji's tongue kept making him shiver when it rubbed over the roof of his mouth, Ichigo didn't even know if his eyes were open or not, but he knew that he couldn't really see anything because of the overwhelming sensations.</p><p>     It took him a while to remember that he was being pressed into the front door, only the feeling of cold air against his stomach drawing him back to awareness. He gasped desperately as Shinji broke the kiss and sucked in as much air as he could, lightheaded from the deprivation. God, Shinji's hands on his waist were so hot compared to the cold air, and Ichigo found his own hands clenching on Shinji's shoulders as he tried to keep up. This was actually happening, Shinji was kissing and touching him. Ichigo had barely figured out that he had feelings for Shinji and still hadn't actually decided what to do about it, but he hadn't even thought about whether Shinji could <em>already</em> have similar feelings.</p><p>    <em> 'Why would he?'</em> Ichigo asked himself, but was distracted from going any further by Shinji tugging on his shirts again.</p><p>     He didn't bother to unzip the sweatshirt or pull off it or the shirt underneath. Shinji just shoved them up against his armpits and the fabric bunched up, brushing against his throat and chin. It was soft, and even though it had actually been years since it had held Shinji's scent it had still become comforting just to think that it was Shinji's, whether it still literally smelled like him or not. Ichigo didn't have any experience beyond kissing with another person, so when Shinji's lips trailed over his stomach and up his chest Ichigo gasped, completely overwhelmed. The cold air hitting his lungs was startling, and Ichigo unconsciously ducked his head to seek out the fabric that he could still imagine smelling like the blonde licking circles against his skin.</p><p>     He had to move one hand to drag the fabric up to his face properly, but as soon as he had his nose and mouth covered in the purple sweatshirt he felt immediately better. The shirt really didn't smell like Shinji, and if anything it smelled like the London air and maybe a bit like dragon, if dragon had a particular scent, but Shinji smelled like Shinji, so there was that. The apartment's cold air had the underlying mixed scent of Shinji and himself, and Shinji was so close that Ichigo could better take in his real scent even through the fabric. Shinji was still toying with his chest but the feeling of his fingers and tongue was secondary to the scent in his nose when he could see Shinji right here with him too.</p><p>     Ichigo groaned and Shinji looked up at him, eyes widening slightly at the sight of Ichigo breathing into the shirt as he stared right back down at Shinji. The blonde surged up and pulled the shirt out of Ichigo's grip, something that made his heart stutter with a feeling of hurt, but then Shinji was kissing him again and even more passionately than before. Ichigo barely noticed Shinji lifting him up and nearly didn't have the presence of mind to wrap his legs around Shinji's waist, he was even less aware of Shinji tearing his own shirt off. Until the older man broke the kiss and shoved his discarded shirt into Ichigo's hands.</p><p>     Gasping, Ichigo stared between the shirt and Shinji, who was watching him curiously intent. Ichigo's hands shook for a moment before they tightened in the fabric and thrust it against his face almost uncontrollably. Ichigo breathed deeply, his whole body shuddering when Shinji's real scent flooded into him, and his eyes snapped closed as he moaned. The previously unnoticed throbbing between his legs suddenly gained his attention and as he breathed in again his hips rocked involuntarily against Shinji's. Hands pushed his legs down again and undid his belt, then tugged open his pants but Ichigo barely noticed, he was too desperately trying to keep his breathing steady with the scent in his nose filling him on every breath.</p><p>     “Shinji?” Ichigo asked, muffled by the fabric when his roommate pried his legs apart and seemed to disappear, but before Ichigo could even get his brain working enough to consider opening his eyes Shinji was back and dragging Ichigo's pants and shoes off.</p><p>     The cool air didn't bother him as much, and Shinji's warm skin under his own when the older Vizard lifted him up again kept any worry from Ichigo's mind. Eyes finally blinking open, Ichigo let his head fall back against the door as he looked at Shinji's concentrating face. Not knowing what the man was doing, Ichigo was startled by the moist finger sliding into his body and he choked on a gasp as his whole body shuddered, eyes rolling back in pleasure. He figured out quick what Shinji was doing and tried to relax, but he'd never even touched himself like this and-</p><p>     The thicker length of Shinji's cock sliding into him made Ichigo tense and relax repeatedly, until Shinji was fully inside of him. Ichigo pressed the fabric against his face as hard as he could, too overwhelmed to really take in everything that he was feeling. Shinji moved quickly, wildly, and when Ichigo met his eyes he could have sworn that he saw a hint of black spilling into his eyes but Ichigo was too lost in pleasure to care when Shinji was slamming repeatedly against a spot that made sparks dance across his vision. Every inhale of Shinji's scent drove him higher as Shinji kept him pinned against the door that rattled in its frame as they moved. Ichigo was so close, he knew that he was despite the way his head was spinning, and in a desperate move he dropped the fabric from his face and clawed his way forward to bury his nose against Shinji's neck instead so that he could take in the full scent right from the source. The second he inhaled it drove him over the edge, and a scream caught in his throat as his whole body shook.</p><p>***<br/>
***</p><p>     Waking up in an unfamiliar place would have sent Ichigo into a panic attack if the scent all around him wasn't so familiar. There were sheets below and above him, a pillow just next to his head, and everything smelled like Shinji. Ichigo's tired mind slowly realized that he was in Shinji's bed, completely naked, and there was a warm body next to him. The memory of what happened after they'd gotten home from Rose's apartment resurfaced, and Ichigo would have blushed if he didn't feel so satisfied still. He didn't really want to move, but scent was one thing, Shinji's body was another. With a groan Ichigo tried to psych himself up in order to seek out Shinji's skin, but a rustle of sheets and a hand on his lower back stilled him. Ichigo didn't move, waiting lazily to see what would happen, and felt the mattress dip when Shinji pushed himself up to his knees.</p><p>     “I know you're awake.” Shinji drawled quietly.</p><p>     “Mmm.” Ichigo hummed in agreement, still unwilling to move, he was tired but so damn comfortable for once.</p><p>     “So I guess you enjoyed yourself as much as I did? I was worried I might have gotten carried away.” Shinji said with a chuckle.</p><p>     “No,” Ichigo breathed “that was good.” He couldn't imagine not enjoying <em>that</em>.</p><p>     Shinji chuckled again and shifted his weight, the sheets billowing up over Ichigo as Shinji moved. Before Ichigo knew it Shinji's hands were on the back of his thighs and moving his legs. With a thrill, Ichigo kept still, waiting to find out what Shinji was doing. Behind Ichigo, the body above him slid into his still loose entrance, and Ichigo breathed against the familiarly scented sheets with a groan of relief. “Shinji.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>only the tiny epilogue left for tomorrow!! :D</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ShinIchi Weekend 2020 - Day 4: Unexpected skill</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>     John Snow breathed hard as he ran down the narrow London streets. Long familiar with the neighborhood, he thought that he could lose the monster that was chasing him if he could only run fast enough. Behind him the behemoth was gaining on him quickly and his panicked breaths raced the slapping of his loafers against the brick beneath his feet. He was a ghost for God's sake! Why was he being chased by a dragon of all things? He was sure, if he could only get around a few tight corners then he could be as lost to the monster as a rat in the walls. Naturally, this is the moment when his toes caught on a loose brick and sent him tumbling to the ground.</p><p>     Panicked, he scrabbled against the brick and flipped himself over, just in time to see the massive beast arching over him with its huge head reaching for him. All those teeth! Throwing his arms over his head uselessly, John screamed, until an explosion deafened him.</p><p>     Looking up through the space between his arms, John took in the sight of the dragon twisting around to get a look at the people he could suddenly see standing on its back. They were lit up from behind by the setting sun, and smoke drifted away from the explosion. Nine people, holding <em>swords</em>, left John gaping in awe as they attacked the monster.</p><p>***</p><p>     The dragon was a big one, and it slammed into more than one building as they all tried to subdue it carefully. They didn't have any Witches with them this time so the ghost still gaping up at them was on his own for the moment, but Ichigo was more focused on the dragon while Hachi moved toward the fallen man.</p><p>     Shinji was in the lead of course, and Ichigo was still in awe of the way that he used the rapier that he'd gotten from Wing Bind. He could fight with it every bit as well as he could with his zanpakutou, though there was still a difference between using a tool and using an extension of your own soul. Either way, Ichigo loved watching the way his boyfriend moved when he fought.</p><p>     As a group their teamwork was improving, Ichigo could feel how the Vizard's moved around him now, he knew just when to slip into a gap between them and just when to pull back for each of their own attacks. It was amazing, finally feeling like he belonged here, and every time it completely distracted him from anything else that might be on his mind. As evidenced by the sudden reminder from his comrades.</p><p>     “Ichigo! Time.” Rose called in an amused tone from the dragon's tail.</p><p>     “Oh, crap!” Ichigo said with a glance at his watch. “Can you guys handle it from here?”</p><p>     “Of course! Go to school already, we've got this!” Lisa answered for all of them.</p><p>     Shinji stepped up next to him for a brief moment. “See you at home later.” He said before leaving Ichigo with a brief kiss that had Ichigo smiling even though he had to run the entire way to his next class.</p><p>     He was still late, but it was worth it.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>As for Mr. OC, John Snow is just the first name that came to mind when I thought 'completely random generic English language name' so whatever.</p><p>Yay! The story is done! :D</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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